Credit: Toby Brusseau
Senior ecologist Steven Apfelbaum, left, of Applied Ecological Services, and Mimi Hillenbrand, owner of the 777 Bison Ranch, inspect the diversity of plant species determine pasture health. Her 26,000-acre ranch near Hermosa, South Dakota, is divided into 35 paddocks that are grazed at a stocking rate of 10 animals per acre.